As the name suggests, each selection is compared to the real NFL draft results to see where the player's true draft value was. The criteria is arbitrary, but both extremely fair and quite simple:

Selections 1-25, can be up to 5 draft slots off to receive positive value.
Selections 26-75, can be up to 10 draft slots off to receive positive value.
Selections 75-150, can be up to 15 draft slots off to receive positive value.
Selections 151+, can be up to 20 draft slots off to receive positive value.

The thinking obviously being that it's easier to identify the better talents in the draft and thus the penalty range for missing on those easier to identify talents is greater. Towards the end of the draft, you can be off by a half round and still get credit for a value selection, the talent is much harder to identify and grade. For this, earlier selections have more value because they are easier to accurately forecast, which keeps GMs from wanting to just trade down and always stockpile.

Each individual selection is checked and marked red if it fails to be an accurate value. These red selections are not counted in the number tally for the Inherent Selection Value. The last 20 selections in the 7th Round are at a disadvantage. If the player is not selected by the end of the NFL draft, the selection is considered inaccurate for bonus point consideration, though for the draft accuracy rankings, those inaccurate selections are just omitted altogether, meaning your accuracy percentage will be based on all your other selections. This is for a seperate Top 32 ranking based solely on Draft Value Accuracy. It is not the listing of whom won the game, but it is the listing of the top GMs in terms of accurately forecasting player draft value.

INHERENT SELECTION VALUE

For purposes of a game like this in which trading is a key factor, you have to maintain equal opportunity between stock piling mid/late round selections versus a limited number of earlier selections. In short, the 1st Overall selection must have some inherent value to make it just as enticing as trading back for multiple selections, or else everyone would always trade. Thus, we have Inherent Selection Value. This is the chart:

This is not a trade value chart, this is an inherent value chart for purposes of grading this game. As you can see, a Top 10 selection has an inherent value of +100 points. Simply selecting a player that is within the quality draft range nets the GM the 100 points. If you use poor draft value, and draft someone that really gets selected at pick #20, you do not get the 100 points. Thus, since it is easier to predict within 5 draft slots the #1 Overall selection, it's almost a guaranteed 100 point value. As opposed to trading back for multiple 2nd round selections, where the inherent value is only 65-75 points, but you have to accurately draft a player within 10 selections, so that's much harder to do. To win the game, you need the most points.

Thus, a cocky GM might feel comfortable trading the sure thing early selection for more later selections because if he drafts accurately on all of those picks, he has a good chance to earn more points than he would staying at #1 Overall. But there's a lot of risk, and as this game shows, those with the most picks did not always fare the best. So, by using inherent values, the integrity and desireabilty of early round selections are maintained, while the desire to just trade back and accumulate a massive amount of selections is checked.

As mentioned earlier, the final 20 selections in the 7th Round, if the player is not picked in the real NFL draft, receive no inherent value points. It just makes these last few selections even less attractive, though if you still nail a sleeper, it's big points.

RAW (ACTUAL) SELECTION VALUE

This is easy, it's simply the difference, positive or negative, for each selection between where they were drafted in the Mock Draft and where they were drafted in the real NFL draft. And then all those values are added together for a score.

This is also why Inherent values were needed as a great selection at #1 Overall that really went #1 Overall would get you zero points. You wouldn't lose any, you wouldn't gain any. But with the inherent value, now you would get 100 points and the selection has great value again.

Thus, Raw Value is really a measure of reaches and steals. Inherent Value is what rewards draft accuracy. Together I think they measure a GM's competency in the draft game.

FREE AGENCY VALUE

This is like extra credit after an exam. If you win a bid on a player in Free Agency and he gets drafted, you get points. Specifically, since this draft had 254 selections, all Free Agents are assigned #255. Thus, if a Free Agent in our game was actually drafted at #200 in the NFL draft, you would get 55 points added to your score (255-200 = 55). This year, we had 29 Free Agents that actually were drafted by the NFL. That's a lot of bonus points. If you want to win this game, you'd probably better participate in the Free Agency Round next year.

These are what the results would have been with no Free Agent round. It's a fun and important part of the game, so everyone should make sure to participate next year and be really strategic with your bids. As you can see, teams that had strong UDFA selections really jumped up the rankings (i.e. Minnesota and Indianapolis).

I am stunned I came in sixth after watching Jesse Williams free fall. I am wondering what I would have looked like taking Hayden. I just wanted to pick him later since I thought NO ONE was going to take a chance on him due to the heart medical. I thought I could get a solid CB later with huge talent upside, let alone true value.

Oh well, Jesse made this draft almost unbearable for me this weekend. Glad its over and time to move on.

Frankly speaking, I think I did better for the Rams than their FO did. I think Ogletree is going to bite them on the ass. Fisher keeps playing Russian Roulette with these bad actors. One of them is going to blow up in his face. I think it will be Ogletree. Tavon Austin is a huge roll of the dice, IMO. How many really fast, small guys have come and gone in this league? I like TJ McDonald, but I think he's an old school, head smashing safety who will draw lots of laundry in the modern NFL. Barrett Jones is a good pick IF he can get healthy, but beside getting Jake Long in a trade (and pissing off Saffold - who is already saying he won't move to RT and wants a trade), they did nothing much to improve protection for Bradford.

The true winners won't be uneveiled until a few years after we've seen these players play. Was interesting to go back in the past years of OM drafts and seeing who drafted players that failed/succeeded

This is just an attempt to show "winners" for the draft game in terms of actual NFL draft value. We can absolutely have winners at that right now since all the results are in.

Now, in terms of which players turn out to be great and all that, I'm definitely not trying to grade or predict that because it's impossible. And that's a whole different set of bragging rights. You best believe I'm pulling for Eric Martin to light up Saints camp.

My goal here was to come up with a grading system that rewards draftniks for scouting players and then accurately placing that value within the confines of the NFL draft, which is extremely hard to do. I'm very impressed by the top GMs. Regardless of score though, I thought everyone put forth a great effort. Especially those that participted all the way through UDFA.

This is just an attempt to show "winners" for the draft game in terms of actual NFL draft value. We can absolutely have winners at that right now since all the results are in.

Now, in terms of which players turn out to be great and all that, I'm definitely not trying to grade or predict that because it's impossible. And that's a whole different set of bragging rights. You best believe I'm pulling for Eric Martin to light up Saints camp.

My goal here was to come up with a grading system that rewards draftniks for scouting players and then accurately placing that value within the confines of the NFL draft, which is extremely hard to do. I'm very impressed by the top GMs. Regardless of score though, I thought everyone put forth a great effort. Especially those that participted all the way through UDFA.

The Jets are moving Campbell to the OL. I know he was a 5 star player coming out of HS. That was the exact plan I had with Steinkuhler. He was a 5 star OL guy coming out of HS as well. Only two left unsigned for me, not too bad.

Frankly speaking, I think I did better for the Rams than their FO did. I think Ogletree is going to bite them on the ass. Fisher keeps playing Russian Roulette with these bad actors. One of them is going to blow up in his face. I think it will be Ogletree. Tavon Austin is a huge roll of the dice, IMO. How many really fast, small guys have come and gone in this league? I like TJ McDonald, but I think he's an old school, head smashing safety who will draw lots of laundry in the modern NFL. Barrett Jones is a good pick IF he can get healthy, but beside getting Jake Long in a trade (and pissing off Saffold - who is already saying he won't move to RT and wants a trade), they did nothing much to improve protection for Bradford.